28 June 2019
Time was, Kylie and Jason could sing a chart-topping romantic duet in the afterglow of a ratings-smash TV marriage and we’d all enthusiastically go: “Are they? Aren’t they? Of course they are!” Today, in our cynical Internet age, such a scenario would be immediately dismissed as a celebrity fauxmance. That was the reaction to Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello in the summer of 2019 when ‘Señorita’ was accompanied by reports of their coupledom. Like Kylie and Jason back then, apparently at that point they were indeed a genuine item. Good for them.
I find it hard to be cynical around ‘Señorita’ anyway, since it’s such a charming and likeable track. The pop smarts of co-writer Charli XCX come through in its sinewy verse melody and hooky chorus. Okay, Mendes may just be a Jason-esque pro forma boy-singer here without any standout moments. As with the shared line in ‘Somethin’ Stupid’ that suggests Frank Sinatra wears perfume, both singers singing the same lyrics means Mendes also says he likes being called ‘señorita’, but let’s not kink-shame. And as with Kylie on ‘Especially For You’, Cabello is the stronger vocalist and does most to sell the song; her performance delivers the smouldering telenovela romance, drama and glamour. Yes, ‘Señorita’ could be easily packaged as a thematically-similar two-for-one with Cabello’s previous ‘Havana’, but I happen to like her on that song too. Leave aside the online snark and, just like Kylie and Jason before, enjoy Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello together. Together!
